My body fat, tape measurements and scale weight are all performed while fasted (first thing in the morning before eating or drinking).

All measurements are taken “cold” (no pump), and flexed.

A 7-point or 9-point body fat caliper pinch test is the most accurate “at-home” method of determining one’s body fat percentage, but even in the most skilled hands calipers have a margin of error up to +/-3%. The key is consistent readings from one week to the next: the actual number is not that important (to me). With that said, I believe my caliper body fat reading is consistently 1.5% – 2% lower than my actual body fat percentage. For example, if my caliper indicates 5.6% body fat, I believe my actual body fat is probably around 7.1%.

If you want the most accurate body fat percentage reading possible, go have a DEXA test done.

TOOLS OF THE TRADE:This is the exact equipment I use to track my progress every week

Over the past week I’ve lost 1.01 pounds of fat and lost 0.39 pounds of lean mass. Since the beginning of my 2015 cut I’ve lost a total of 13.86 pounds of fat and lost a total of 8.34 pounds of lean mass.

My tape measurements (as measured by the MyoTape) indicate that over the past week I’ve lost a quarter inch from my hips, a quarter inch from my thighs, a quarter inch from my calves and a quarter inch from my chest while all other measurements remained the same. Since the beginning of my 2015 cut I’ve lost 2.75 inches from my waist, 2.75 inches from my hips, 2.0 inches from my thighs, 1.50 inches from my chest, 0.75 inches from my calves and 0.25 inches from my arms.

Here are this week’s actual tape measurements:

Location

Current Measurement

Waist

29.50″

Hips

35.50″

Forearms

12″

Arms

14.25″

Quads

20.50″

Calves

15.00″

Chest

39.00″

ANALYSIS

Well folks, in the “JSF era” (2003 – present) this is the lowest scale weight and body fat percentage I’ve ever recorded. Not surprisingly, all of my soft tape measurements are also the lowest they’ve ever been. This has been a very successful cut, and I’m pleased with what I was able to accomplish with just nine weeks of hard work and commitment. I feel compelled to again point out that my calipers always read low for me. Consistently low, and within their margin of error, but low. My educated guess is that I’m actually in the low 6% body fat range right now.

DIET

Diet this week was, as always, 100% to my cutting plan and very clean.

My complete daily food logs for this cut can be found on MyFitnessPal.

TRAINING

Activity level over the past week has been moderate.

So far this week I’ve cycled a total of 304.2 kilometers (189.0 miles) and, of course, today I’ll be riding. That total includes a nice 101 mile ride I did yesterday to end my cut. It was a good group ride with the Crazies. Here’s a photo that was taken at the 32 mile SAG stop:

WMBC Cross-Florida Training ride #2. This 101 mile ride was the final of my 2015 cut, and a fun time (I’m second from the left).

My riding streak continues unbroken with 432 straight days in the saddle starting December 31, 2013.

My cycling totals for 2015 (66 days) currently stand at 3,217.56 kilometers (1,999.3 miles) with 22,476 meters (73,740 feet) of elevation. My total riding time for 2015 is a little over 100 hours in the saddle.

I’ve set 127 cycling personal records for time so far in 2015, and 7 lifetime best power output personal records. Here are all my current power output personal records.

WRAP-UP

This has been an excellent cut, but it’s also been one of my tougher ones. I want to thank all my friends and family who have supported and encouraged me, and put up with my occasional (heh) low-calorie crankiness. I’m very much looking forward to getting back to maintenance calories and getting back to full strength on the bike. This will probably take a few weeks to a month, but I should start feeling noticeably stronger within a matter of days.

I knew when I woke up this morning I could eat anything I wanted for breakfast. I chose to have a banana and a big bowl of oats. Told you I love the foods I eat. 🙂

Okay folks, I’m finally on vacation! I’ll resume my usual daily blog in a couple of weeks (Monday, March 23rd). See you then!

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